Waiting For August

Part 39 ~ More than friends...

Strange thoughts invaded my brain, and I wasn't the only one. We were flopped down all around the room. The lights were low and something mellow was playing quietly in the background.

Our conversation had started out normally enough. We'd been discussing our post-semester plans, whether we planned on working or interning for the summer and whether or not we were going to be staying in the city or heading home. At some point it had morphed into something completely different, yet which felt as equally important.

"So, let me see if I've got this." I was lying on April's bed with my head at the foot. Tommy was lying on the floor immediately below me and I was peering down over the edge at him. "Yeti is real but there's no such thing as a Sasquatch?"

"Exactly." Tommy nodded.

I frowned. "Then what about the abominable snowman?"

"Wait. Aren't they the same thing?" Mason inquired. He was lying on his own cushion next to Tommy.

"Of course they are." Nikki exclaimed. She and Emma were spooned together faced towards us, as they shared a pillow in the middle of the shag rug. "They're all the same species. It's like bears. We have black bears and brown bears and polar bears. It just depends on the region."

Tommy was shaking his head. "Wrong. You are all wrong. They're not the same." Tommy sighed, sounding quite exasperated by us all. "Yeti and the abominable snowman are the same thing. But everyone knows that the Sasquatch is just a guy running around in an ape suit."

I thought about that. "Then what about bigfoot?"

Tommy glared up at me. "Are you purposely messing with me right now, August?"

Was I? I giggled. I really had no clue.

"Maybe," Mason said getting up. "You're both right, and the big foot is the guy in the ape suit, and Sasquatch is the real deal; just like Yeti." He flopped down into the bed behind me. I was lying on my stomach, and he had decided to slip his arms around me and use me as a pillow with his chin resting on my shoulder.

"That sounds right." Emma said nodding. She had leaned up on one arm to peer at us from behind Nikki.

Nikki's brow was crinkled as she considered. "That actually makes sense." She sat up suddenly as if coming to an epiphany. "Yeti is the polar version of the Sasquatch. Like the polar bear is to the grizzly."

"Oh, good God." Tommy was shaking his head. "I give up." He sat up, looked at Mason and me and frowned. "What are you guys doing?"

"What do you mean?" I asked. Mason was warm and I was feeling sleepy. It didn't help that I'd become used to falling asleep in his arms.

Mason laughed. "It's called cuddling. Human companionship. Are you not familiar with the concept?" Mason asked in a teasing tone.

"But you're guys."

"Yeah, so? Friends are allowed to cuddle. You should try it some time."

Tommy looked at me. "And you're okay with this?"

"Sure. Why wouldn't I be?"

I thought about all the times Mason and I, had spooned or cuddled while watching a movie. I'd become accustomed to his companionship. Craved it, really. It was something that I'd been missing out on for so many years.

We'd spent the entire winter break together while everyone else in our group had gone home. For three weeks, the dormitory had been like a ghost town. We would literally go days without running into anybody. We had the lounge to ourselves and on several occasions had curled up on the sofa together to watch movies late into the night. We were in our bedclothes and socks and because the dorm was often chilly, we had snuggled under a blanket.